The Canterbury Puzzles, and Other Curious ProblemsDudeney, Henry Ernest
Science
The Canterbury Puzzles, and Other Curious Problems
Dudeney, Henry Ernest
Puzzles; Riddles
Here is a puzzle that was once on sale in the London shops. It represents
a military train--an engine and eight cars. The puzzle is to reverse the
cars, so that they shall be in the order 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, instead
of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, with the engine left, as at first, on the side
track. Do this in the fewest possible moves. Every time the engine or a
car is moved from the main to the side track, or _vice versa_, it counts
a move for each car or engine passed over one of the points. Moves along
the main track are not counted. With 8 at the extremity, as shown, there
is just room to pass 7 on to the side track, run 8 up to 6, and bring
down 7 again; or you can put as many as five cars, or four and the
engine, on the siding at the same time. The cars move without the aid of
the engine. The purchaser is invited to "try to do it in 20 moves." How
many do you require?
[Illustration]
88.--_The Eccentric Market-woman._
Mrs. Covey, who keeps a little poultry farm in Surrey, is one of the most
eccentric women I ever met. Her manner of doing business is always
original, and sometimes quite weird and wonderful. She was once found
explaining to a few of her choice friends how she had disposed of her
day's eggs. She had evidently got the idea from an old puzzle with which
we are all familiar; but as it is an improvement on it, I have no
hesitation in presenting it to my readers. She related that she had that
day taken a certain number of eggs to market. She sold half of them to
one customer, and gave him half an egg over. She next sold a third of
what she had left, and gave a third of an egg over. She then sold a
fourth of the remainder, and gave a fourth of an egg over. Finally, she
disposed of a fifth of the remainder, and gave a fifth of an egg over.
Then what she had left she divided equally among thirteen of her friends.
And, strange to say, she had not throughout all these transactions broken
a single egg. Now, the puzzle is to find the smallest possible number of
eggs that Mrs. Covey could have taken to market. Can you say how many?
89.--_The Primrose Puzzle._
[Illustration]
Select the name of any flower that you think suitable, and that contains
eight letters. Touch one of the primroses with your pencil and jump over
one of the adjoining flowers to another, on which you mark the first
letter of your word. Then touch another vacant flower, and again jump
over one in another direction, and write down the second letter. Continue
this (taking the letters in their proper order) until all the letters
have been written down, and the original word can be correctly read round
the garland. You must always touch an unoccupied flower, but the flower
jumped over may be occupied or not. The name of a tree may also be
selected. Only English words may be used.
90.--_The Round Table._
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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